Process for forging bucket-wheels.



W. H. T. THGRNHILL.

PROCESS FOR FORGIANG BUCKET WHEELS. APPLICATION FILED FEB. 23. 1915.

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PROCESS FOR FURGING BUCKET WHEELS. I 'APPLICTION FILED FEB. 23, 1915. L1 905m@ Patented July 11, 1916.

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y n g i WILLIAM H. T. THORNHILL, 0F PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July lil, IWW..

Application led February 23,1915. Serial No. 9,863.

To all whom t may concern.'

Beit known that I,WILLIAM IIT. THORN- i-HLL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, county of Philadelphia, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Processes for Forging Bucket-Wheels, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

The forging of bucket wheels by apparatus-in most general use involves the employment of cumbersome and expensive dies,

whose life is short, and special dies are nec-I essary for each size of wheel. The operation is therefore quite expensive. A process and apparatus are however known whereby comparatively small and inexpensive dies of relatively great durability may be utilized in the manufacture of wheels of different sizes. In this process a blank lwith al central hole is placed upon an anvil diehaving a pin which projects through the hole. One wall of the hole is maintained against the pin and an upper die compresses the metal of the blank along a radially extending section thereof adjacent to said wall, the blank being turned from time to time to allow the upper die to compress other radial sections, the operation being continued until the entire blank is forged. This process displaces the metal mainly tangentially or at right angles to the radius under the die, thus increasing the diameter of the wheel. It also reduces the thickness of the wheel. This process, while operative to effect the manufacturer of different sized wheels unprovided with rims of greater thickness than the webs', is not, in and of itself, operative to effect the complete manufacture of different sized wheels provided with rims of special thickness.

The object of my invention is to modify and improve this known apparatusand process so as to forge wheels of different diameter having rims of greater thickness than the web.

The invention has for another object the manufacture, without change of dies, of

wheels in which the difference between thickness of web and thickness of hub is variable.

In the drawings, which illustrate a preferred embodiment of my improved apparatus for carrying out my improved process: Figure l is a plan view of the lower die and carriage. Fig. 2 is a side view of the apparatus, with a wheel blank shaped as a result of the first forging operation. Fig. 3 is a section on line 3 3 of Fig. l. Fig. 4l is a section showing an end view of the dies. Fig. 5 is a sideview similar to Fig. 2 showing the carriage in a different position, with a wheel blank shaped as a result of the concluding forging operation.

a represents a stationary anvil or lower die. rIhe upper die b is shouldered on its inner face to receive a removable diel section c held in place by studs d,

Adjacent to the inner face of die a is a carriage e. This carriage constitutes, in effect, part of the lower die, as clearly appears'hereinafter. At the beginning of the forging'operation, the carriage preferably abuts against the lower die so as to be continuous therewith.

rIhe carriage e is slidable horizontally toward and lfrom the stationary lower die along ways f, which rest on removable blocks la within a support g. rlFhe support and ways are secured together by means of bolts z' extending between flanges g', f.

The ways f and the carriage e are provided with rows of holes 7c and j respectively. The holes in one member are spaced differently from the holes in the other member. Thus, I have the holes 7c spaced at uniform distances apart and the holes j at irregular distances apart. At different horizontal positions of the carriage different pairs of holes aline, and the carriage is maintained in any adjusted position at which the holes register by means of pins m.

The carriage is socketed on its face to receive the enlarged lower end of a removable pin n.

The ways f are vertically adjustable in the support g. The height of the ways is determined by the thickness of the blocks h.

In the initial operation the carriage is in the position shown in Figs. l and 2, and a blank, of disk shape with a center hole,

is placed on the carriage. One radially eX- 5 tending section of the blank will overlie the lower die a. The wall of the hole in the blank that is nearest the dies a and b is maintained against the pin n. The upper die, by suitable mechanism, is lifted and moved down or allowed to drop, and alternately therewith the blank is turned step by step, until the dies have acted upon the entire circumference of the wheel, thereby shaping the same to the form shown at in Fig. 2. This operation increases the d1- ameter of the wheel, shapes the wheel at the junction between hub and web, and reduces the thickness ofthe wheel. The pins lmI are now withdrawn and the carriage e is moved horizontally in the ways f away from the die a. The distance to which the carriage will be moved depends upon the extent to which it is desired to enlarge the diameter of the wheel in the neXt operation.

The pins m are now reinserted. The upper die is now reciprocated and the wheel turned as in the first forging operation. In the second operation, however, the wall of the hole farthest from the dies is maintained against the pin.- There is preferably, no further reduction in the thiclmess -of the hub or of that part of the web adjacent thereto, but the-metal of the rim is compressed and also displaced outwardly, thus .35 substantially increasing the radial dimensions of the web and decreasing the width and thickness ofthe rim, as shown at y, Fig. 5. If the second operation is the final operation, the rim will have the approximate shape and thickness required for the rough forging. The apparatus permits, if necessary, of one or more additional operations. The number of operations depends upon the desired diameter of the finished wheel and upon the eXtent to which it is desired to increase the diameter of the wheel in a single operation. If, at the conclusion of the final wheel expanding operation, it is found that the rim is of too great thickness, the wheel can be moved over into position to bring the edge of the rim underneath the upper die, and the rim alone may then be compressed to the proper thickness by revolving the wheel step by step between reciprocations of theupper die, as in the previous operations.

To effect the forging of a wheel having a hub of relatively great thickness, the ways f are lowered by removing the blocks g or by substituting thinner blocks. The die section c is also removed and a thinner plate substituted. I do not herein claim the apparatus for forging bucket wheels in accordance with the process herein claimed, as the same forms the subject matter of a divisional application filed March 23, 1916, Serial No. 86,185.

' Having now fully described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

Vl. The process of forging wheels with a central opening, which consists in forming a blank with a central hole, compressing a relatively small part of the entire blank on one side of the hole while maintaining the adjacent wall of the hole against an abutment, repeating the operation on other relatively small parts of the blank until the blank has been forged throughout its circumference, then compressin a relatively small part of the entire blan on one side of the hole while maintaining the most distant wall of the hole against an abutment and repeating the operation on other relatively small parts of 'the blank until the same has again been forged throughout its circumference.

2. The process of forging wheels with a central opening, which consists in forming a blank with a central hole, compressing a relatively small part of the entire blank to form a radial section of the hub and a part of the web adjacent thereto while maintaining the adjacent wall of the hole against an abutment, repeating the operation until the hub and the inner part of the web adjacent thereto has been forged, then expanding the web and increasing the diameter of the wheel by compressing a small part of the metal beyond the previously forged part of the web, and re eating the operation throughout the circum erence of the wheel.

3. The process of forging wheels with a relatively thick hub, a relatively thin web 106 and a rim thicker than the web, which consists in forming a blank of substantially uniform thickness with a central hole, compressing a small part of the blank between the central portion thereof and the periph- 110 eral portion thereof and repeating the 0peration throughout the circumference of the blank while maintaining the wall of the hole nearest the compressing force against an abutment, thereby forming a relatively 11i thin web, then compressing a small part of the blank between the previously compressed portion thereof and the peripheral portion thereof and repeating the operation throughout the circumference of the blank, thereby increasing the radial dimension of the web while leaving a peripheral portion of greater thickness to form the rim.

4. The process of forging wheels with a relatively thick hub, a relatively thin web and a rim thicker than the web, which consists in forming a blank of substantially uniform thickness with a central hole, compressing a small part of the blank between the central portion thereof and the periphllo eral portion thereof anol repeating the operation throughout lthe circumference of the blank While maintaining the Wall of the hole nearest the compressing force against an abutment, thereby forming a relatively thin Web, then compressing a small part of the blank between the previously compressed portion thereof and the peripheral portion thereof and repeating the operation throughle out the circumference of the blank and then compressing the rim throughout its circumference to reduce its thickness.

lin testimony of which invention, ll have hereunto set my hand, at Philadelphia, on this 18th (lay of February, 1915.

WlLLlAM H. T. THORNl-HLL.

Witnesses:

M. M. HAMiL'roN, E. E. WALL. 

